


Let’s Start Anew

by myaami



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Changing Seasons: A Persona Girls Zine, Character Study, Gen, Personal Growth, Poetry, Spring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:08:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26926354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myaami/pseuds/myaami
Summary: The seasons turn; let’s start anew.A year after the events in Inaba, and Yukiko reflects on what it means to grow.
Relationships: Amagi Yukiko & Kujikawa Rise, Amagi Yukiko & Satonaka Chie, Satonaka Chie & Kujikawa Rise
Comments: 4
Kudos: 9





	Let’s Start Anew

**Author's Note:**

> My piece for the Changing Seasons: A Persona Girls Zine!

_Spring is not for you._ That’s what Yukiko told herself when she was preoccupied at the inn before the busy summer months. It’s how she could wave away concerns about staying inside, surrounding herself with a façade of perfection. The truth, she buried, but never fully put to rest. _Don’t look too closely,_ she’d think, lest she realize that she had been left behind as the world bloomed around her.

Things aren’t as they once were, though. She makes her own decisions now. Sees herself in a new light, and Inaba as the place she has chosen as her home. Yukiko cherishes this chance to do what she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, before. 

And thus, it begins, slowly, with the rain splashing on the ground as the gentle soundtrack to an afternoon at home with Rise and Chie. Yukiko opens a window to hear more of the tune.

“A walk!” Rise declares, after she stretched out her hand to catch the falling drops. “The rain is nice and warm, so we’ll hardly notice it. Plus, we might even find a rainbow to wish on! What do you think?”

“What do I think?” Chie repeats. “I think this calls for a puddle jumping contest! The one who can make the splash go above our heads is the winner!” And with that, the three of them bundle up in their coats, tuck in their hair, and pull up their boots before stepping outside.

It’s a breath of life, this rain, a breath shared by the entire town. Where once fog and death were sure to follow, the rain has liberated itself with the help of Yukiko and her friends. Now, it’s something that can be enjoyed.

Yukiko links arms with Rise and Chie as they scour the town for their prized puddles. They take turns, and when Yukiko steps up to the puddle’s edge, so does her yellow-eyed reflection. Yet instead of sneer like it used to, it cheers her on as she jumps, and it laughs as the ripples dispel the image of her stagnant past. Yukiko splashes her way towards victory until the rain slows and vibrant colors paint themselves across the sky.

“Make a wish,” Rise whispers, but Yukiko’s wish already came true one year ago when she was thrown into a TV. Before that, she sat as a prim rose in the earth, waiting to be plucked and rescued, when all she needed to do was lean towards the sun and reach for something more. And she did. Within her heart, Yukiko searched and found the words that would move herself to _change._ They’re precious words of growth that awakened her Persona, and to this day, they carry her forward:

_In spring, we’re meant to touch the sun, but my poor girl, what have you done?_

_You’ve covered truth with lies and shame; it pulls you under, speaks your name._

_Come stand and face your greatest fears, your Shadow’s laughter in your ears._

_Declare “you’re me and I am you.” The seasons turn; let’s start anew._

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so proud of this poem :) This was a fun little piece, thank you for reading!


End file.
